ISKCON AHMEDABAD’S ONE-DAY JOY-FILLED PADAYATRA

December 4, 2017

By Murlimanohar Dasa

On November 13th the devotees of ISKCON Ahmedabad set off on a one-day padayatra. It started at 8 a.m. at the ISKCON Ahmedabad temple, and ended at 12:30 p.m. at the Jalaram Mandir Paldi. More than eighty-five devotees participated and over 100 devotees honored prasadam that day. The procession was led by the deities of Sri Sri Nimai Nitai and Srila Prabhupada who were carried on a palanquin. The deities were followed by the vibrant sankirtana party with the women in colourful attire upfront and the men at the back.

The highlight of the padayatra was the performance of sankirtana and the special nritya (dance) by the devotees. This dance is very similar to the form used by the devotees during the Polish Festival headed by Indradyumna Swami. It was interesting to observe that some people who began just watching ended up joining us and tried to follow the elegant footwork of this sacred dance. It was a jubilant scene of dance and music. People were chanting the Holy Names and dancing with such love for the Lord.

We served sumptuous prasadam to everyone who attended the padayatra, and because the book marathon had officially commenced, we also distributed 25 big books and 175 small books during the walk. A special thanks to those who contributed to the success of the padayatraby engaging in various services such as kitchen seva, kirtana seva, book distribution and general assistance. We humbly request all devotees to kindly participate in future padayatras, which is an amazing experience and an amazing opportunity to receive the mercy of Sri Guru and Gauranga.